Lisa Fransson short story included in new anthology

A short story by CWP alumna Lisa Fransson has been included in an anthology of stories to bring hope in dark times. Inspired by Emily Dickinson’s famous poem, the stories included in HOPE: The Thing With Feathers each have a feather motif and a hopeful positive ending.

Lisa wrote her story For All That Is and Still Lives specifically for this HOPE anthology as it fitted beautifully with the theme of the speculative short stories she’s working on at the moment.

She says: ‘On the top of my road begin the Sussex Downs, an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. I walk these hills every chance I get. Sometimes in the mornings before I set to work, sometimes in the light summer evenings, always on the weekends. I’m by nature a gatherer, so it’s not unusual for me to pick up a feather, or a snail’s shell, or a stone, or a curiously shaped bit of wood. These treasures are gathered on my windowsill of my office and on my desk. Sometimes I will use them for crafts, and always they will inspire my writing. Kieran in my story For All That Is and Still Lives is, like me, a gatherer, only he’s a gatherer with a plan for a more warm-hearted world.

The anthology was published on 2 August.

Lisa took the Creative Writing Programme from 2014-2016 and her debut novel The Shape of Guilt was published by Epoque Press in 2023. You can read more about her journey to publication here.

Interested in following in Lisa’s footsteps? The Creative Writing Programme and Life Writing Programme starts again in October 2025 and we’re running taster sessions throughout September so you can see it’s for you.